Three new coffee shops open every day in the UK
And four in 10 Brits have increased their coffee consumption this year.
New research commissioned on behalf of The London Coffee Festival has found that Brits’ love of lattes is on the increase with 3.3 new coffee shops opening daily across the nation. This growth sees the coffee shop industry pouring £9.6bn into the UK economy, an increase of 7.3% since 2017.
At this current rate, estimates put the number of coffee shops over-taking pubs by 2030 as Brits continue to swap lager for lattes. There are now around 24,000 coffee shops across the UK, a combination of non-specialists, independents, and major chains such as Starbucks, Costa and Caffe Nero. 1,215 stores opened in the last year alone.
But it’s not just physical outlets that are thriving, sales in independent and branded chains continue to grow. The big three chains contribute 19% of the total coffee shop sales.
The data also shows 39% of Brits stated their coffee consumption has increased over the past 12 months, with 18% of people visiting at least once a day.
The London Coffee Festival was set up in 2011 and has grown to become the largest celebration of coffee culture in Europe, welcoming over 25,000 people through the doors over four days in April. The four-day festival includes coffee roasters, suppliers, musicians, bakers, cocktail mixologists, latte artists, chefs and baristas. This year’s festival runs 12-15 April at the Old Truman Brewery off London’s Brick Lane.
Jeffrey Young, founder of The London Coffee Festival, said, “Even in the face of market uncertainty with Brexit, the UK’s love affair with coffee shows no signs of stopping. For the industry to be contributing almost £10bn per year to the economy is an incredible achievement and shows how coffee has come to be the go-to drink for Brits and how advanced coffee-shop culture has become.”
“The London Coffee Festival is a celebration of coffee culture and an industry that is so important to the nation both financially and culturally. We welcome people from all over the world to the event and the buzz you feel as you walk through the door is testament to the passion for coffee that has grown in this country.
